“ Cornerstone Fitness has been asking us why we are #allin The simple answer is...Me. That’s a really hard statement because at first it felt really selfish. But after ignoring my body and health for the 13 years of school and training post high school, I knew I could do better. I deserved to focus on myself and deserved to treat myself better. It took a long time to get to that conclusion, but I finally did. With the support of Sarah and urging of some other friends at work, we took fundamentals together and started CrossFit classes 7 months ago. Half joking but actually kind of serious, whenBrandon Russell Killin asked if we had any goals before we started I said Lara Croft’s arms were my aspiration. Slowly but surely 💪! Thank you to all the coaches (esp Brandon and JD Springmeier for putting up with training us!), thank you for all the Cornerstone support and new friends, and thank you to myself for showing up and trying my best. 👊”

Meet Anne! She just completed our Fall nutrition challenge as well. Not all goals need to be numbers driven when starting a nutrition challenge. Anne wanted to improve the quality of her workouts, sleep, and recovery and she did just that! Read what Anne had to say after successfully completing the 8 weeks!

"Before this challenge, I thought I had the nutrition thing down. I considered myself a disciplined eater. I was laser focused on eating vegetables and fruit, little protein and not a lot carbs. I have struggled over the years with not getting enough sleep at night, which heavily impacted my performance inside the gym. I consistently felt like I didn’t have enough energy to make it through longer met-cons and my days.

I’ve almost entirely changed what I eat and how much I eat. It’s hard to believe how little I was eating and how much it was affecting me! I now have more energy during the day and during my workouts, and I’m sleeping better. More importantly, I think my biceps might be a tad bigger 😉"

The beginning of 2016 was definitely a rough start to a life changing year. I was suffering through a heart wrenching and devastating breakup, was in the process of moving back to my parents’ house while searching for a new job, and every day I struggled with my self-image. Over the course of 3 years, I had gained well over 40 pounds and lost even more of my confidence. I no longer knew the girl on the other side of the mirror staring back at me. She looked sad, lonely, and unhealthy. I did not like her.

I was desperate to make a permanent change.

Soon after moving back to my parents’ house, I started a new job in West Chester. Every day, I would pass a building with a green awning that read CROSSFIT CORNERSTONE. I would shake it off and continue on my way to work, thinking there was no possible way I could even hang with the “Crossfitters.” But, the following day I would pass it again. I began relating it to one of those annoying alarm clocks that would only snooze for a short time and then start screaming again, forcing you to wake up out of a dead sleep. I took it as a sign and made a big leap into the unknown.

On May 24th, 2016 I nervously stepped into the Cornerstone world and it was then that my life changed forever.

Cornerstone has become my sanctuary. Outside of work, it is where I spend majority of my time and is the light at the end of my every day tunnel. Crossfit is the hardest thing I’ve ever done, but I never feel inferior to the person standing next to me, despite the restrictions I may have. We, including the coaches, are a team and community, supporting each other in our own personal journeys and rooting for the other’s success. I have made many lifelong friends with some of the sincerest and selfless people I’ve ever come in contact with. Without them, I wouldn’t be in the good place of my life that I’m in now.

Here we are 10 months later… So far I have lost 22 pounds and have gained so much more than just muscle. It hasn’t been easy, and I would be lying if I said I’ve never cried during or after a workout… especially if it involved running but it has been the most rewarding and empowering experience I’ve endured thus far. My body continues to surprise me every single day and I truly believe the sky is the limit.

It’s easy to say that Crossfit Cornerstone and the people surrounding it saved me from the darkness I was living in. Today, when I look in the mirror, I see a happier and healthier person with glowing confidence staring back. I love her.

I walked through the doors of Cornerstone in November 2015 to try a class before going through the fundamentals. Before walking through the door that first time many thoughts raced through my mind… would I “fit” in, can I do this, etc. My mind was put at ease when I walked in and met Coach Jen for the first time at that 9am class. But before all of that, I first started cycling in 2011 to lose weight and get in shape after stepping on the scale and realizing I was quickly approaching the 300lb mark at 290. When I started at Cornerstone, I weighed in at 250lb and today I am at 225.

I decided to give Crossfit a try after belonging to a typical gym and dreading going there (and thus never went). Cornerstone first appealed to me for the class structure and available times.

My first class I was impressed with the overall coaching, knowledge and welcoming family atmosphere of Cornerstone. I expected to walk in to my first class and see all of these elite competitors. However, there are people of all shapes, sizes and abilities that come to Crossfit and I thought to myself “Wow” I can fit in with this group!

Throughout my first year of Crossfit, I have been fortunate enough to have achieved many things including gaining many friendships. From the small achievements of being able to carry my 11yr old and my 7yr old up the stairs to bed at the same time to hitting PR’s in tons of movements. Early on someone said every day is a PR and that continues with me today. I have recently hit double unders consistently and even did a handstand push up, which I didn’t think would be possible being 6’4” and 225. My fellow classmates and coaches even talked me into participating in the 2016 Crossfit Games Open where I completed each workout at the scaled level. This year I was able to hit every workout in the 2017 Crossfit Games Open at the Rx level.

I have made the 9am class my routine on Monday, Wednesday and Friday and continue to come every week to improve my overall health and well-being to be able to take care of my family for the foreseeable future. Being able to commit to the routine doesn’t allow me to make the excuses of not going plus it is a fun environment and the Coaches are awesome! If you are thinking about Crossfit Cornerstone… Try it! It will be a life changing experience.